Another "Almost" Season

ANOTHER "ALMOST" SEASON:  THE YEAR IN REVIEW

Let's review:  We began this blog before the first game of 2017 asking whether it would be the "next year" that faithful Mississippi State fans seemingly have eternally waited for.  The answer, we now know, is no, but it was close ... not as close as the Dak-inspired 2014 season when we reigned as #1 in the country for 5 weeks before faltering, but close.  Expectations to begin the season were wide-ranging, depending on whether one has a pro or con Bulldog bias.  The jackasses who perenially look down their noses at State picked us to finish last in the West at something like 2-10 and 0-fer in the conference.  The most optimistic of Maroon & White followers guessed (and hoped) for something like 8-4, perhaps being crazy, even 9-3, but those were considered "certifiable."  Most thought going 6-6 and keeping the bowl streak alive was doable ... with a little luck.  We knew that we had Nick back, hoped that he could come close to making the jump from sophomore to junior year that Dak did, and knew that we had rid ourselves of the scourge of Peter Sirmon so that the highly recruited talent on the defensive side could develop and (dare we hope?!) shine.  Last season, which had been the most disappointing one under Mullen, had ended well with a trouncing of the infidel Landsharks nee' Black Bears and a bowl win in a game we pretty much stumbled into.  We knew there were holes at receiver, although there were some big guys (one of whom could perhaps turn into a reasonable facsimile of DeRunnya?), the secondary was pretty young, and the offensive line unproven.  The schedule looked appreciably tougher than the previous year's, so even if the team was better, the tests would be harder.  It made for a mix of optimism and trepidation.  Would Dan the Man keep the streak alive and again be the object of myriad rumors, or would he end the year on the proverbial hot seat after a second straight disappointing season?

For most of us, this past season was, as ole Chuck Dickens once wrote, the best of times and worst of times.  The highs (e.g., walloping LSU, winning the Gator Bowl, and finishing the year in the Top 25) were joyously high, and the lows (e.g., letting a convincing win over UAT slip away at the end and losing at home to a very mediocre TSUN team) were painfully low.  As many have said and written, had we been asked before the season if we would take 8 regular season wins followed by a winning bowl trip to FL, probably 99% of us would've said, "Hail, yeah!"  But once we had those 8 in our pockets with a home game against the downward-spiralling Lambsharks coming up, a Top 15 ranking, and a Citrus Bowl bid all on the table for us, blowing those things, losing our QB to a ghastly injury, then losing our coach left us bitterly disappointed.  Then Cohen's efficient hiring of JoeMo, a very successful early signing day, and the bowl upset of Lamar & Louisville put us back on a comfortably lofty perch.  Now, in retrospect, it was, as the inimitable Old Blue Eyes and others sang, "a very good year."  Put another way, it was (as the often and justifiably maligned Al Derogatis was derided for having once said) "almost awesome."

Here are some helmet stickers that I think deserve to be handed out:

• The defensive line, under the tutelage of Brian Baker, became a true force of nature.  Simmons and Sweat quickly developed into absolute beasts, and the supporting cast were good, played hard, and were deep.  Hoyett, Thomas, Jones, Brown, Adams, Harris, Spencer ... and they'll all be back.
• Had it not been for the the prowess of the D line, the linebacking corps would've been highly celebrated.  Dez Harris, he of countless knee surgeries, stayed well until almost the end of the season and had a superb year as a player and leader.  Erroll Thompson was a terror ... like a Panzer Tiger tank!  J.T. Gray had his best year ever.  Willie Gay was what we thought he was when we signed him ... fast, savvy, and tough.  Tim Washington had some impressive plays, as did Leo Lewis.
• Todd Grantham did a masterful job transforming the defense from a discouraging liability to a dominating asset.  Maybe he had the right philosophy (fast, physical, aggressive), or maybe he was just the right guy for our roster ... but he was what we needed.  Despite our 4th quarter swoon against UAT and our lackluster play against UAT, I really hated to see him go.
• For the first time in many moons, we had a kicker.  Jace's PAT's were automatic, and any FG inside of 45 was money in the bank.  What a vast relief!
• Logan Cooke was again an exceptional punter who hung it high with no returns, put it inside the 20 often, and kicked off into or out the back of the end zone with regularity.  We'll miss him.
• The running game with A Train and Nicky Fitz was not just good, but good enough to ravage LSU and to run through the vaunted Tide D with reckless abandon.  Kylin, Nick Gibson, and Keytaon all had some superb runs, which give us just cause to look forward to several years of rushing talent.
• The most impressive of all to me was the development of the offensive line.  As I said during the season, Hevesy has caught his share of scorn from 'Dog fans, but this year's O line play was the key to our season.  Those guys pushed everybody around -- even with Martinas out for a few games -- and protected Nick well too.  Perhaps Hevesy can't recruit a lick, but the big lummox could develop players.
• Finally, a sticker to the former Dan the Man.  I know, I know ... the SOB left us.  But he left us infinitely better than he found us.  And this year with a ton of question marks on offense (could we throw enough to be effective with an inconsistent passer and inexperienced receivers?), defense (were those highly touted defensive players really as bad as they looked under Sirmon?), and kicking (did we have anyone who could even kick a PAT?) he won this year.  And he left the cupboard pretty darn well stocked.

There were some not so bright spots -- too many big passing plays allowed, very limited effectiveness among the receiving corps, an absence of big plays offensively, for example -- but why quibble?  It was, I repeat, a very good year.  

Soooo ... onward to 2018!  The outlook is downright terrifying to me ... we have so much talent returning, yet we State fans recall with trepidation that our history is such that every time State is picked to do well, we trip on our own [you know].  Yes, the 'Dogs will have to play in Baton Rouge and Tuscaloosa.  But, damn, we will be loaded.  Admittedly I've been a passionate Bulldog fan for 60 years now, so to demonstrate that these are not just my maroon-colored glasses and Pollyannaish outlook talking, let me share with you the following empirical data (courtesy of the Fair-Haired Boy, my progeny and statistician) to support my optimism:

To make the good even better, now Montez Sweat has announced that he will return for next season.  Will next year finally be Next Year??  Hope, thou doth don the Maroon and White!  Join the 'Dog pile, and stay tuned ...